Developing efficient means for producing alternative fuel sources is important in societies dependent on fuel. The process for developing solid synthetic fuel (“synfuel”) from coal is one such alternative. Briefly, the synfuel process involves the steps of treating coal with a chemical change agent to produce synfuel. The chemical change agent often comprises a latex and water. The ratio of latex to water depends on the brand of latex. After being processed with the chemical change agent, the synfuel is ready to be sold. The synfuel is generally sold to utility customers that burn coal and/or synfuel to generate power.
The amount of chemical change agent that must be applied to the coal to produce synthetic fuel falls within a narrow range. If too little chemical change agent is applied, a uniform synfuel product will not be produced. If too much chemical change agent is applied, the cost of the synfuel is dramatically increased. The reason for this is that the cost of latex per ton is approximately twenty times higher than the cost of coal per ton. Seemingly small increases in the amount of chemical change agent applied to a given amount of coal have a significant impact on the cost of the synfuel. As a result of the cost of the chemical change agent, a synfuel process should use the appropriate amount of chemical change agent to produce synfuel.
Operational fluctuations in the amount of coal feedstock being processed makes it difficult to determine how much chemical change agent should be applied to coal feedstock at a given time. Often, the amount of chemical change agent applied is based on the weight of coal feedstock processed plus a safety factor. The safety factor represents excess chemical change agent applied to coal feedstock to ensure that no coal feedstock escapes processing. Generally, the safety factor is based on expected fluctuations in the amount of coal feedstock processed and the confidence the synfuel process operator has in the available process data.
The present invention contemplates a process whereby process data is gathered about the synfuel process and is converted into information that is presented graphically in a manner that is usable by the process operator. The information is presented in a way that allows the process operator to quickly and easily determine how the process is operating. Often, process information represents dimensionless ratios that are scaled such that their relative positions provides the process operator with information. In this manner, the process operator is able to determine how the process is operating by looking at the relative positions of plots. By using summary process information, a process operator is more readily able to reduce the safety factor, thereby increasing the efficiency of the process.